Program Overview

Master of Urban and Regional Planning / Urban Design

The M.U.R.P./M.U.D. Dual Degree is a student-initiated dual degree in the programs of Architecture and Urban and Regional Planning. Spanning traditional disciplinary boundaries, the degree fosters experimental design and planning approaches in the study of contemporary urban phenomena. During their studies, students gain a broad range of skills, and courses integrate real estate and public finance, urban governance, design culture, environmental stewardship, and the humanities. Building on those areas of inquiry, the design studio sequence curates the development of analytical, projective and speculative design work addressing complex urban dynamics, globally.

Course of Study

Students admitted to the combined program are required to complete the first-year courses in the M.U.R.P. degree program first, and then begin the M.U.D. program during the fall of the second academic year. Students may apply for admission to both the M.U.R.P. and M.U.D. programs simultaneously, or apply to the M.U.D. program while in residence during the first year of the M.U.R.P.

Degree Requirements

The dual M.U.R.P. / M.U.D. degree requires the completion of a minimum of 78 credit hours. Specifically, a student must complete:

• A minimum of 30 credit hours of URP courses (courses with course titles starting with URP).
• Required specific core urban planning courses, including introduction to statistics (unless waived), public economics for planning (unless waived), planning history and theory, planning institutions and law, planning methods, fundamentals of planning practice, spatial thinking and environmental systems, and fiscal planning and management.
• A minimum of 27 credit hours of urban design UD courses (courses with course titles starting with UD).
• Sufficient urban design courses to satisfy the other distributional requirements for the M.U.D. program of study: a 3-credit-hour elective on Sustainability Landscape or Ecology, and a 3-credit-hour elective on Law, Policy, and Institutions.

A total of 15 credit hours may be double-counted toward the two degrees and students must earn a cumulative GPA of B in each unit. The courses are:

• URP 500: Planning History and Theory (3 credits)
• URP 502/503: Planning Institutions and Law (US or Comparative) (3 credits)
• URP 510: Physical Planning and Management (3 credits)
• URP 603/UD 722: Capstone or Studio II (6 credits)

Sample Course Sequence

The following sequence presents a sample or representative array of courses that would satisfy the dual degree program of study.

• Year 1 Graduate Study
  • Fall Term
    • URP 500: Planning History and Theory (for UD 713) (3 credits)
    • URP 509: Public Economics for Planning (unless waived) or elective (2 or 3 credits)
    • URP: Elective(s) (3-6 credits)
    • Elective (3 credits)
    • URP 600: Expanded Horizons (Optional) (1 credit)
    • Total: 12-16 credits
  • Winter Term
    • URP 502/503: Planning Institutions and Law (US or Comparative) (3 credits)
    • URP 506: Planning Methods (3 credits)
    • URP 507: Fundamentals of Planning Practice (3 credits)
    • URP 550: Representation and Communications for Planners (if not design) (4 credits)
    • URP: Elective (3 credits)
    • Total: 16 credits
• Year 2 Graduate Study
  • Fall Term
    • UD 712: Studio I (6 credits)
    • URP or UD: Elective (3 credits)
    • UD 714: Representation (3 credits)
    • URP 510: Fiscal Planning and Management (for UD 716) (3 credits)
    • Total: 15 credits
  • Winter Term
    • URP 603/UD 722: Capstone or Studio II (6 credits)
    • URP: Elective (3 credits)
    • UD 715: Theories and Methods of Urban Design (3 credits)
    • URP: Elective (3 credits)
    • Total: 15 credits
• Year 3 Graduate Study
  • Fall Term
    • UD 732: Studio III (6 credits)
    • UD 717: The City and Urban Design: History, Movements, Policies and Outcomes (3 credits)
    • *Elective(s): Number of elective hours depends on credit hour need (6-9 credits)
    • Total: 15-18 credits

Admission Requirements

Students must file separate applications to and be admitted by both programs. An application fee must accompany each application. Each program will apply its own standards in making admission decisions. Applicants may apply to both the M.U.R.P. and M.U.D. programs simultaneously, or they may apply first to the M.U.R.P. program and then, if admitted, apply to the M.U.D. program during their first year of M.U.R.P. graduate study.